No Resemblance between Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict and Kosovo – Azerbaijani MP

France, Strasburg, 22 January / Тrend corr A. Maharramli / There is no resemblance between the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and other conflicts ongoing in the post-Soviet area.

"The historical roots of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict do not have resemblance to others," MP Ganira Pashayeva, a member of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), said at a PACE meeting during discussions over the future status of Kosovo on 22 January.

The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which time active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding peaceful negotiations.

On January 2005, PACE passed Resolution 1416 in regards to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. The Resolution says that Armenia occupies Azerbaijani territories. It also contains suggestions on settling the conflict. PACE established a sub-committee on control over implementation of the document.

The PACE winter session is ongoing in Strasburg. An Azerbaijani delegation is in attendance. The session will end on 25 January.

According to Pashayeva, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is a result of the occupation of 20% of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia. "And that caused ethnic cleansing in the region," she said.

Pashayeva called on Armenian MPs to try not find resemblance between Kosovo and Nagorno-Karabakh, but to try their best for settlement of the conflict.

" Azerbaijan supports the efforts of international organizations in settling the Kosovo conflict which has been ongoing for many years. The lingering Kosovo conflict impedes stability and security in the region. Thousands of people have been suffering from that for a long period. Therefore, determination of the Kosovo status and a soon to be solution to the problem is very important. Unfortunately, several countries and forces are trying to make use of the Kosovo conflict for their own interests," the MP said.

Armenian officials state that Kosovo may be a precedent in settling conflicts ongoing in CIS countries, i.e. the Nagorno-Karabakh, South Ossetia and Trans-Dniester conflicts, she said.

"These statements and ideas first of all confuse the Armenian people, as well as Armenians who are Azerbaijani citizens and are residing in the occupied Azerbaijani territories. At the same time, they seriously harm ongoing peaceful negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh between the two countries," Pashayeva said.